Reply #9: Asian markets plunge; Nikkei sinks nearly 10 pct.

[ozymandius]

TOKYO - A massive sell-off on Wall Street and escalating fears of a global recession sent world stocks plunging Friday, with Japan's key index shedding nearly 10 percent to close out its worst week in history.

Despite recent moves by the world's central banks to thaw frozen credit markets and boost investor confidence, their efforts have fallen flat as markets hurtled toward a global equity crisis.

"Selling is unstoppable in New York and Tokyo," said Yutaka Miura, senior strategist at Shinko Securities Co. Ltd. in Tokyo. "Investors were gripped by fear."

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In Australia, where the S&P/ASX200 plummeted a record 8.3 percent, market watchers were calling it "Black Friday."

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Key indices in Hong Kong, India and Singapore were all down about 7 or 8 percent. Mainland China's Shanghai Composite Index posted a more moderate decline of 3.6 percent.

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As Europe opened, major markets also plunged. Britain's FTSE 100 index slid about more than 5 percent, while Germany's DAX was down 7 percent.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081010/ap_on_bi_ge/world_markets